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Atmospheric nitrogen (N) deposition can have a series of effects on forest ecosystems. As N deposition increases N availability in forest ecosystems, soil phosphorus (P) becomes a limiting factor for forest productivity. However, it is not clear whether long-term N deposition can affect on soil carbon (C) and N stability, and whether the addition of P can moderate the impact of N deposition. A five-year experiment of N and N + P additions was conducted in a subtropical evergreen broad-leaved forest in eastern China. The seasonal dynamics of soil C and N and the abundance of their stable isotopes (δ13C and δ15N) were investigated in the 0–30 cm layer. Soil C, N and δ13C and δ15N abundances had significant vertical distribution characteristics. Soil C and N contents increased significantly under N and N + P additions, especially in the topsoil (0–10 cm); δ13C did not change significantly under N and N + P additions, but the linear slope (β) between δ13C and soil organic carbon (SOC) and C/N indicated that N + P addition slowed down the decomposition rate and enhanced the stability of SOC. Soil δ15N increased significantly under N and N + P additions, and enriched with the increase of seasonal temperature. Our findings implied that the linear slope of δ13C and SOC (β) and C/N can serve as potential indicators of soil C stability under N and N + P additions in subtropical forests. The soil δ13C and δ15N abundance was affected by the interaction between soil C and N. δ13C abundance showed no significant response of the stability of SOC to N and N + P additions. It suggests that the further study is needed to reveal their response mechanisms to long-term N deposition in subtropical forest ecosystem. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of clarification treatments on volatile composition and aromatic attributes of wine samples. 'Italian Riesling' icewines from the Hexi Corridor Region of China were clarified by fining agents (bentonite (BT) and soybean protein (SP)), membrane filtration (MF), and centrifugation (CF) methods. The clarity, physicochemical indexes, volatile components, and aromatic attributes of treated wines were investigated. Both the fining agents and mechanical clarification treatments increased the transmittance and decreased the color intensity of icewine samples. Bentonite fining significantly influenced the total sugar content, total acidity and volatile acidity. Total acidity decreased 2–3.5% and volatile acidity 2–12%. MF showed the greatest influence on total phenol content, decreasing the initial content by 12%, while other treatments by less than 8%. Volatile analysis indicated that both the categories and contents of volatile compounds of wine samples decreased. MF treatment showed the most significant influence, while SP fining showed much lower impact. Odor activity values indicated the compound with the highest odor activity in Italian Riesling icewines was β-damascenone. For this compound, BT and SP did not show significant differences, however, in MF and CF it decreased by 20% and 63%, respectively. Furthermore, with high impact on aroma were: ethyl hexanoate which reduced by 20–80% especially in MF; rose oxide which extremely reduced in MF and undetected in BT, SP, and CF; isoamyl acetate which reduced by 3–33% and linalool decreased by 10–20% and undetected for BT. Principle component analysis indicated that icewine clarified by different methods could be distinguished and positively correlated with odor-active compounds. Floral and fruity were the dominant aroma series in icewine samples followed by fatty, earthy, spicy, vegetative and pungent flavor. The total odor active value of these series significantly (p < 0.5) decreased in different clarification treatments. Sensory evaluation showed similar results, but the SP and CF wine samples achieved better sensory quality. This study provides information that could help to optimize the clarification of ice wines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To assess the quality of life (QOL) of advanced schistosomiasis patients, and understand its influencing factors., Methods: A questionnaire survey was carried out by using WHOQOL-BREF, and the information of demography, family, illness, health status, and health service was collected., Results: Among the 217 advanced patients, the average age was (75.33 ± 6.94) years, the ratio of male to female was 2:5, 89.86% of them were farmers, 75.58% were illiterate or semi-illiterate, and 88.94% belonged to the splenomegaly type. Totally 61.29% of the cases had the scores over average for the overall QOL, but the scores for the health and well-being were lower. There were a significant difference among the average scores of different domains of QOL (χ2 = 23.46, P < 0.01). Both the year of being diagnosed and clinical classification was not associated with the scores of QOL. Regularly taking physical activities was significantly associated with each of all the 4 domains. The factors such as onset of acute disease in 2 weeks, taking therapeutic pills daily, marital status, age, etc. impacted the specific domains of QOL. The overall QOL and the 4 domains of the patients were at medium level; meanwhile, the score of physiological domain was lower than the scores of the other 3 domains., Conclusions: The QOL(s) of advanced schistosomiasis patients in Qingpu District are relatively good. It is important to provide effective community health services and encourage the patients to take part in tempered sports or physical activities in order to keep their normal activities of daily living.